Striking Spotlight

Six Youth Athletes Earn Titles at Storm Youth Championships

BRIGHAM CITY, Utah – The Storm Youth Championships (SYC) invited athletes and their families to travel to Wichita, Kansas to compete at Northrock Lanes and experience the tradition of excellence in this community. 147 youth bowlers competed in three five-game rounds on three different Kegel patterns in five divisions determined by gender and age (U18 Boys, U18 Girls, U15 Boys, U15 Girls, U12 Mixed Division) for a national title and a portion of the $13,325.00 scholarship fund. The overall champions are decided based on total pinfall.

In Wichita, four of the bowlers who were recently named to the Storm Youth All-American Team earned titles at the SYC event in Wichita and three bowlers claimed back-to-back SYC titles in their age divisions.

“Watching the families who choose to attend the SYC and adapt to precautions to ensure a safe playing field is inspirational as bowlers plan their return to bowling,” Gary Hulsenberg, Vice President of Business Development said. “Through their overwhelming support of the events we have been able to continue to create an environment where athletes can learn, raise funds for a worthy charity, and award national champions all while staying safe.”

In the U12 division, Matteo Quintero, a member of the 2020 Storm Youth All-American Team, always brings energy and enthusiasm to every SYC event he competes in and followed up his victory at the SYC- Indy with the title in Wichita. He averaged 195 for the event and earned two gold medals and a bronze on the individual patterns. 

The U15 division featured two athletes who truly showcase kindness to their fellow competitors and work ethic. In the U15 girl’s division, Morgan Kline captured her first SYC title averaging 205 for the event. Kline competed in the first SYC event in Reno, Nevada in 2017 and has continued to demonstrate her determination to improve at each event she competes in. In Wichita, she earned gold medals on every pattern to claim the overall title. In the U15 boy’s division, Bud Sicard continued his dominance at the SYC in 2020. He has won the U15 boys title the three events that he has entered in 2020 and continues to improve in each time he steps on the lanes. He averaged 218 for the event and picked up one gold medal and a silver medal. Sicard was also named to the 2020 Storm Youth All-American Team.

Winning a single Storm Youth Championship title requires consistency, determination, and patience across the challenging patterns. Winning multiple titles in different bowling environments and patterns at the youth level shows incredible mental strength and strong fundamentals. The two athletes who claimed the titles in the U18 division have executed at the highest level consistently.  In the girl’s division, Jillian Martin averaged 219 finishing 316 pins ahead of second place to claim her sixth title. In the boy’s division, Spencer Robarge averaged 238.5 in Wichita finishing 202 pins ahead of the competition to claim his tenth title. Robarge continues to set records in the sport of bowling, and he has earned the most SYC titles of all of our SYC athletes over the years.  Both Martin and Robarge are members of the 2020 Storm Youth All-American Team.

In addition to the overall champions, the top three athletes in each division were presented a gold, silver, or bronze medal after each round.

Overall Medalists: U12 Mixed – Matteo Quintero (gold), Alex Crowley (silver), Ewan Oester (bronze). U15 Boys– Bud Sicard (gold), Anthony Hornick (silver), Henry Hind (bronze). U15 Girls– Morgan Kline (gold), Karina Capron (silver), Abigail Starkey and Kayla Star (bronze – tie). U18 Boys– Spencer Robarge (gold), Brandon Bohn (silver), Brandon Bonta (bronze). U18 Girls– Jillian Martin (gold), Brianna Rogers (silver), Alyssa Ballard (bronze).

The Medalists on the NORTHROCK Short Pattern: U12 Mixed – Alex Crowley (gold), Ewan Oester (silver), Matteo Quintero (bronze). U15 Boys– Henry Hind (gold), Bud Sicard (silver), Blaine Canfield and Phoenix Montoya (bronze -tie) U15 Girls– Morgan Kline (gold), Kayla Starr (silver), Abigail Starkey (bronze). U18 Boys– Spencer Robarge (gold), James Bennett (silver), Eric Jones (bronze). U18 Girls– Jillian Martin (gold), Brianna Rogers (silver), Kassidy Miller (bronze).

The Medalists on the NORTHROCK Medium Pattern: U12 Mixed – Matteo Quintero (gold), Alex Crowley (silver), Ewan Oester (bronze). U15 Boys– Brek Strobel (gold), Bud Sicard (silver), Blaine Canfield (bronze). U15 Girls– Morgan Kline (gold), Karina Capron (silver), Kayla Starr (bronze). U18 Boys– Spencer Robarge (gold), Brandon Bohn (silver), Brandon Bonta (bronze). U20 Girls– Jillian Martin (gold), Alyssa Ballard (silver), Kensley Morris (bronze).

The Medalists on the NORTHROCK Long Pattern: U12 Mixed – Matteo Quintero (gold), Bella Castillo (silver), Alex Crowely (bronze). U15 Boys– Bud Sicard (gold), Dmitri Richardson (silver), Anthony Hornick (bronze). U15 Girls– Morgan Kline (gold), Karina Capron(silver), Savannah Hsu (bronze). U18 Boys– Brandon Bonta (gold), Brandon Caruso (silver), Cole Macaluso (bronze). U18 Girls– Jillian Martin (gold), Dakota Lennen (silver), Danielle Henderson(silver) Alyssa Ballard (Bronze)

Every athlete who entered the tournament received a Storm Axiom bowling ball.

The DeSocio Family, General Manager, Brent Bowers, and the entire North Rock staff helped to create a safe and welcoming environment for all the participants and their families. Their support of the SYC ensures our event run efficiently from start to finish.

Giving back is an important part of the SYC and athletes come together to raise funds all weekend long for Ballard vs. the Big “C” which supports continued research in cancer treatment, specifically in head, neck and throat cancer through the sport of bowling. BVBC also raises money for nutritional supplements and treatments for those going through the cancer journey. $10 of every entry will go directly to BVBC to continue to fight the war against cancer. SYC athletes have contributed $8,100 to BVBC in 2020.

The owners of Logo Infusion, Ken and Kathy Keegan joined us in Wichita to provide apparel for the SYC. Logo Infusion is the official jersey partner of the SYC and creates customized jerseys to help commemorate each of our events. They have also created the Dan Keegan Scholarship for youth athletes to earn scholarship to use towards their education throughout the year. They awarded two scholarships to SYC athletes based on their sportsmanship throughout the weekend. The winners were Morgan Kline and Harley Shene.

Through seminars, the SYC is focused on providing education in addition to fun competition to the families who choose to spend the weekend at the SYC. Through this education, we like to encourage these young athletes to learn about opportunities for them to continue in the sport after their youth career is complete. The Storm Team hosted an educational seminar about building an arsenal and the SYC Families were also invited to join Newman University for a seminar and Q&A about college bowling in the afternoon. After practice, Wichita State University hosted a special signing for four of the SYC Athletes, Molly Marshall, Brooklyn Gagnon, Brandon Bonta and Spencer Robarge. In addition, WSU hosted small optional tours for registered SYC athletes to attend. After the Friday activities at WSU, several current WSU students joined the SYC staff to volunteer as scoring assistants for the weekend.

We’re proud to partner with great companies to enhance the SYC experience at events including Storm, Roto Grip, Logo Infusion, Kegel, 3G Shoes, Ballard’s Bowling Academy and Bowlers Journal International. The event was livestreamed over the two days on the Storm Bowling Facebook Page and scores were uploaded live through the official scoring system of the Storm Youth Championships, BowlMetrix.

Two events remain on the 2020 SYC Tour. The SYC will return to North Carolina and South Carolina for the Coastal Classic October 3-4. This event is sold-out with a waiting list. The final event of the 2020 SYC Tour will take place in Orlando on November 7-8. Entries open September 28 for this event.

For final results of all rounds of competition and for more information on the SYC visit the Storm SYC page at http://www.stormbowling.com/SYC.